Excavator base and frame



1939. w. HARNISCHFEGER EXCAVATOR BASH AND FRAME Filed Jan. 11, 1937 4Sheets-Shet l R O m E V m ATTORNEY,

Jan. 24,1939. w. HARNISCHFEGER 2,144,760

EXCAVATOR BASE AND FRAME Filed Jan. 11, 1937 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Q I N Q %5& Q N

v S/ E N El? s INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY.

Jan. 24, 1939. w. HARNISCHFEGER 2,144,760

EXCAVATOR BASE AND FRAME Filed Jan. 11, 1957 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTCJR.

ATTORNEY.

Jan. 24, 1939. w. HARNISCHFEGER 2,144,760

EXCAVAT'OR BASH AND FRAMF.

Filed Jan. 11, 1937 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 INVENTORQ ATTORNEY;

Cal

Patented Jan. 24, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT" OFFICE EXOAVATOR BASE ANDFBALIE Application January 11, 1937, Serial No. 119,947

6 Claims.

This invention relates to supporting structures for tractor-propelledrotating-cab material-,handling equipment and resides in a novel form oftractor base and rotating-cab frame composed entirely of rolled orforged or high strength elements united by welding.

In the fabrication of .the supporting structures used for rotating-cabmaterial handling equipment it has been the.custom to employ as the mainelement of the structure castings made from iron or steel. Therequirement of high strength which the particular service imposes hasbeen met largely through the use of massive designs. The structures sofabricated although possessed of the requisite strength have beencharacteristically heavy. Some attempts have been made to employ othermethods of fabricating such structures, as by the use of rolledstructural members united-by bolting, riveting, or other methods offastening. 'In every case where such variation from the customary designhas been resorted to, the object, apparently, has been to make thesubstitution as inobvious as possible and to as nearly approximateconventional massive designs as circumstances would permit.Consequently, material reduction in weight or material gain in strengthhas not resulted from such departure.

The supporting structure of this invention, however, is composedentirely of rolled or forged standard sheets or shapes of consequentlyhigh strength, the structure being united by welding. Strength throughsheer massiveness of design is avoided and strength is obtained byproper disposition of high tensile strength material; As a result, thesupporting structure of this invention is rugged and of appreciablyreduced weight. In addition, by reason of the simplicity of thestructure of this invention, it may be fabricated with facility and at acost not exceeding that of the older and more inferior designs.

The structure of this invention is best described by reference to theaccompanying drawings, wherein Fig. 1 is a side elevation, partly insection,

showing the supporting structure of this inven-' tion;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view from above of th tractor base portion ofthe supporting structure of this invention;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view from above, with Fig. 5 is a sectional viewof a detail taken on the plane 55 of Fig. 4; and

Fig. 6 is a perspective view showing the method of assembling therotating cab frame portion of the structure of this invention.

In the following description of the figures the further objects andadvantages of the structure of this invention will appear more indetail.

In Fig. 1 the appurtenances and structure of a typical rotating cab,material-handling machine are shown in light, broken lines, togetherwiththe structure of this invention in heavier lines so that therelation of this invention thereto maybe clearly understood. As shown inFig. 1, the structure of this invention is composed of two majorportions,-the tractor base I and the rotating cab frame 2, these. partsboth being shown in heavy lines. Indicated in dotted lines are aconventional tractor tread 3, mounted in conventional manner upon thetractor base l, and a boom 4 mounted on the forward end of the rotatingcab frame 2and a motor 5 and gearing 6 mounted on the rearward end ofthe frame 2. The portion of the structure shown in heavy lines, beingthe portion with which this invention is concerned, constitutes the mainstructural supporting member of the entire machine.

The tractor base, as shown in Fig. 1, and as illustrated more in detailin Fig. 2, rests upon the longitudinals 1, 8, 9, and I0 formed ofchannel bars or bent plates arranged in pairs, as shown clearly in Fig.2. Mounted upon-the longitudinals are the cross bearers II and I2, thelongitudinals above described being held in place thereby through themedium of the margin welds indicated in the drawings, one of which isdesignated, for example, by the numeral l3. The inner longitudinals 8and 9 are additionally secured to the cross bearers I l and I 2 by thecorner boxes formed from bent sheet material M, which are welded inplace, as shown in Fig. 2. Mounted upon this frame, as shown by dottedlines in Fig. 1, is any suitable type of track-type tractor tread 3.

The cross bearers II and I2 support in turn a circular turntable trackIS. The track is in the form of an annulus shaped from rolled steel, asshown clearly in Fig. 2, and is secured by welding to the top of thecylindrical collar l6 as shown by the numeral H in Fig. 4. The collar l5rests directly upon the cross bearers II and I2 and is welded thereto.The collar I6 is, however, as shown in Fig. 2, additionally secured tothe cross bearers H and I2 by' means of the corner plates l8, I9, 20,and 2|. Box ribs 22, 23, 24, and

and 26.

webs 3| and 32, as shown in Fig. 4, and projectingvertically therefrom,is thepintle 30, which is welded to the conical top 21 and securelybraced within the drum 28 by the webs 3| and 32. These webs are firmlywelded to the. drum 2! and to the pintle 30, as clearly shown in Fig. 5.A cylindrical crown 33 is welded into place on the top of the cone 21.

Mounted to turn about the pintle 30 is the frame 2 of the rotating cab,as shown clearly in Fig. l. The frame 2 is formed as shown more clearlyin Figs. 3 and 6 from a principal troughlilre member 34 fashioned from asingle plate and bent to the shape shown in Fig. 6. The member 34 iscomposed of a bottom portion 35, the sides of which are bent upwardly toform respectively the side plates 36 and 31. The edges of the sideplates and 31 are rolled over, as indicated at 33 and 39 (Fig. 6), toadd additional stillness. The member 34 having been thus formed, bracing40, composed of bent or rolled channels, is laid upon the bottom 35andsecurely welded in place by means of marginweld, as shown in Fig. 6.In addition, steel plugs, such as 4| and .42, are welded in place, to besubsequently bored out to form bushings.

A floor plate 43 is next formed, having rolled edges 44 and 45, asshownin th'e'left hand end of Fig. 6. The floor plate 43 is perforated, asindicated by the numeral 46, and is provided with openings of propersize and position to correspond with steel plugs, such as 4| and 42. Thefloor plate 43 is brought into position by sliding it forwardly from theposition shown in the left hand end of Fig. 6 to the position shown inFig. 3. Having been thus brought into position, the rolled margins 44and 45 are welded'to the side plates 36 and 31, respectively, as shownin Fig. 3. In addition, the plate 43 is securely welded to the bracing40 by plug welds 41 formed in the perforations 46, which are providedtherefor. Ears 43 and 49 are then inserted in the slots provided by thenotches 50 and 5| and welded in place, and finally the capmember 52,formed of a channel, is fastened in place by welding. The sideplate I1is additionally stiffened by the gusset 53, a similar gusset, not shown,serving to strengthen the side plate 36. After assembly the plugs 4| and42 are bored out, as shown in Fig. 3, to form the bushings 4| and 42'shown in Fig. 3. Various accessories, such as pillow blocks 54, enginemountings 55, and drive housings 56, may be secured in place, asdesired, to accommodate any particular handling equipment employed.

Secured to the bottom of the frame 2 are roller supports 51, which bearupon the circular track I! forming the turntable upon which the rotatingcrane body swings. 'As shown in Fig. 1, the boom 4 may be attached tothe ears 43 and 49 in the usual manner.

arc welding.' However, arc, torch, or spot welding, or other suitablewelding, may be employed to effect assembly without departing from thebroad principals of the structure of this invention.

That which I claim as my invention is:

1. In a supporting structure for track-type tractor-propelled,rotating-cab material-handling equipment, the combination. comprising atractor base formed of spaced longitudinals, cross bearers welded tosaid longitudinals to maintain the same in spaced relation, acylindrical collar welded upon said cross bearers, an annular turntabletrack welded upon said collar, spokes welded within said collar, a hubheld in centered relation with respectto said collar by weldedconnections to said spokes, an upwardly projecting pintle securelywelded to said hub, a rotating cab frame mounted to swing about saidpintle formed from a principal troughlike member having a bottom portionthe sides of which are bent upwardly to form side portions, bracingmembers welded upjoh said bottom portion, a bushing cooperating withsaid pintle welded to said bottom portion, a floor plate between saidside portions and welded thereto and resting upon said bracing membersand united by welding thereto, and means for the support of suitablematerial-handling appliances upon said rotating cab frame.

2. A rotating cab frame suitable for use with equipment of the typedescribed, comprising a principal troughlike member having a bottomportion with sides bent upwardly to form side portions includingvertical projections forming bearing supports, bracing members weldedupon said bottom portion, a bushing forming a center about which saidframe rotates welded to said bottom portion, and a floor plate betweensaid side portions and welded thereto and resting upon said bracingmembers and united by welding thereto.

3. A tractor base suitable for use with equipment of the type described,comprising longitudinals, cross bearers welded to said longitudinals tomaintain the same in spaced relation, a cylindrical collar welded uponsaid cross bearers, an annular turntable track welded upon said collar,spokes welded within said collar, a hub held in centered relation withsaid collar by welded connection to said spokes, and an upwardly pro-Jecting pintle securely welded to said hub.

4. In a supporting structure for track-type tractor-propelled,rotating-cab material-handling equipment, the combination comprising atractor base formed from spaced longitudinals, cross bearers welded tosaid longitudinals to maintain the same in spaced relation, cornerbraces welded to said longitudinals and said cross bearers at thejunction thereof, a cylindrical collar welded upon said cross bearers,bracing members beneath said cylindrical collar and welded thereto andto said cross bearers, an annular turntable track welded upon saidcollar, spokes welded within said collar, a hub formed from a drumshapedexterior and a webbed interior held in centered relation with respect tosaid collar by welded connection to said spokes, an upwardly projectingpintle securely welded to said hub and to the webs therein, a rotatingcab frame mounted to swing about said pintle formedfrom a principaltroughlike member having a bottom portion and sides which are bentupwardly to form side portions, bracing members welded upon said bottomportion, a bushing cooperating with said pintle welded to said bottomportion, a floor plate between said side portions and welded thereto andresting upon said bracing members and united by welding thereto, andmeans for the support of suitable materialhandling appliances upon saidframe.

5. A rotating cab frame suitable for use with equipment of the typedescribed, the combination comprising a principal troughlike memberhaving a bottom portion and sides which are bent upwardly to form sideportions including vertical projections forming bearing supports,bracing members secured to said bottom portions, a bushing about whichsaid irame rotates secured to said bottom portion, and a floor platesecured between said side portions and resting upon said bracing membersand united thereto.

6. In a tractor base suitable for use with equipment of the typedescribed, the combination comprising spaced longitudinals, crossbearers superimposed thereon and secured thereto for maintaining saidlongitudinals in spaced relation, a

7 and having an upwardly projecting pintle, and v spokes within saidcollar {or holding said hub in position and for providing stillness tosaid collar so that the same may serve for cross-bracing of said crossbearers and spaced longitudinals.

WALTER HARNISCHFEGER.

